Stories from Wednesday, May 22, 2013

According to a new report released Tuesday by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), Verizon Wireless had the highest customer satisfaction ratings for wireless telephone service, followed by Sprint and then AT&T and T-Mobile. Smaller companies had higher ratings, with the category for "all others" having a customer satisfaction rating of 78, well above any of the big four providers...

In the Fall of 2012, the Better Business Bureau solicited nominations for the 2013 Torch Award for Ethical Commerce and the response was overwhelming.* "BBB received over 250 nominations," according to Kathleen Calligan, president and CEO of the BBB Middle Tennessee. ...

This year, the Tennessee Department of Health started a new employee recognition program. Each year, The Annual Public Health Excellence Awards will be presented at the local level. This year in the South Central Region two Department of Health employees based in Bedford and Marshall Counties were recognized for their efforts in public health. The awards were presented April 19 at the Marshall County Health Department...

Two Boston terrier puppies were stolen from the back porch of an Oak Street home Monday, Shelbyville police said. A man who was at the home earlier asking about the puppies is listed as a possible suspect. The following were arrested since Monday by the Bedford County Sheriff's Department, Shelbyville Police Department, Tennessee Highway Patrol or 17th Judicial District Drug Task Force. They are only charged; guilt or innocence will be determined by the courts...

Four Tennessee Highway Patrol checkpoints are scheduled for June. Driver's license checkpoints will be held June 8 at the Midland Road-Whiteside Road intersection, June 21 on State Route 64 at the 18 mile marker and June 28 on State Route 82 at the 6.5 mile marker. A sobriety checkpoint will be held June 28 on State Route 82 at the 9 mile marker...

MURFREESBORO -- Starting in the fall, Middle Tennessee State University will offer a new master's degree in management geared toward professionals in the workforce looking to advance in their careers. The Tennessee Board of Regents recently gave final approval for the Master of Science in Management program through the Jennings A. ...

Shelbyville Central will be well represented at the TSSAA Spring Fling as a number of members of the Golden Eaglette and Eagle track teams will compete at the Dean A. Hayes Track & Soccer Stadium on the campus of MTSU. Sophomore Clorissa Campbell will run in the 800 meter dash, Lexi Haan competes in the discus, Ryan Carden tests his speed in the 400 meter dash while the relay team of Jaylon Thompson, Tunde Onakoya, Marquis Lyons and Marquis Morton will race in the 4 x 200 and 4 x 400 relays...

Peoples Bank of Bedford County will be accepting donated items for the tornado victims in Oklahoma. An enclosed trailer will be the bank's parking lot that the items will be loaded into and then carried to Nashville to Churches of Christ Disaster Relief. The church is located at 1122 N. Main St...

A federal appeals court has upheld the conviction of an man who sold a fully automatic weapon to an undercover Bedford County officer two years ago. In 2011, Thomas Lee Stetler of Port Clinton, Ohio, was convicted of illegally possessing 14 firearms he had sold to undercover agent David Sakich of Bedford County Sheriff's Department...

A repeat offender from Bedford County lost an appeal for a reduced sentence and an overturned conviction. William Henry Smith, Jr. is serving a six-year sentence for being an habitual motor vehicle offender, but special judge Christopher Craft ruled that the sentence is "supported by the record."...

Scott Johnson of Bedford County Emergency Management Agency says that this week's tragic EF-4 tornado in Oklahoma should cause local residents to take a moment to consider their own tornado preparedness. "Any simple plan should include how to get tornado warnings in a timely manner and where to go to for protection," wrote Johnson. ...

Proponents of an arts and lifestyle center in Wartrace held another meeting Tuesday night, but were faced with lower turnout than at previous meetings, and they aren't certain whether that indicates a lack of support or just a busy time of year. Supporters of what's being called the Wartrace Arts Community are talking about buying a home and property in Wartrace for use as a center for the arts, for demonstrations of sustainable living, and other projects. ...

Bedford County Imagination Library, which gives books to young children every month from birth to age 5, needs money -- and would like to get it from offenders passing through the court system. But county commissioners who heard the request Tuesday night say the proposal must be studied carefully to make sure it's legal...

The Bedford County Board of Education approved a proposed budget Tuesday. The proposed 2013-2014 budget includes estimated revenue of $52.4 million, total available funds of $57.3 million and total expenditures of $54.9 million. Former Superintendent Ed Gray, acting as a budget consultant, said the proposed budget would not cut any teachers or school-level administrative jobs. ...

With no new taxes or services included, Shelbyville's city council passed the 2013-2014 budget on first reading Tuesday. City manager Jay Johnson said that he and treasurer Jamey Owen followed the council's instruction to "live within our means," keeping the tax rate at $1.65 per $100 of assessment value...

The Times-Gazette posted a video earlier this week showing a high-speed chase across the county early Saturday morning that ended with one young man dead and one injured. Our sympathy goes out to the family of the man who lost his life. When searching for a "why" in a sudden, unexpected death, raw feelings sometimes take over...

Gary Keith Farrar, 51, of Shelbyville died Monday, May 20, 2013 in Nashville. A memorial service will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday at Lighthouse Church with Jay Pope officiating. Daves-Culbertson Funeral Home of Tullahoma is handling arrangements.

MURFREESBORO -- ThorSport Farm and FarmPaint.com will hold an open house on Friday, May 24, featuring company information, tours of the new buildings and facility, live entertainment and a meet and greet with two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers...